Nonprofit solarizing Habitat for Humanity homes

TEMECULA  Oakland-based nonprofit GRID Alternatives will be erecting free solar panel arrays on the seven Habitat for Humanity homes in Temecula later this year during a "Solarthon" event.

All seven of the homes are in Old Town; five on Pujol Street and two on Sixth Street.

Officials with GRID's Riverside office promoted the upcoming installation, which is scheduled for November, from the front yard of Tom Fitzgerald's Tanager Circle home.

On Fitzgerald's roof, volunteers brought in by GRID were hard at work Tuesday putting up a 3.6-kilowatt solar panel system on his Nicolas Valley home, an array that is projected to cut his power bill by around $1,000 a year for the next 30 years.

"That's a bunch of groceries, it buys a lot of gas; it's incredible," said Fitzgerald, who is a widower caring for two teenagers, a boy and a girl.

GRID found Fitzgerald with some help from the city, which provided the nonprofit with a list of homeowners who have used city programs to either buy or fix up their homes.

GRID sent out mailers to those homeowners, Fitzgerald replied and he was qualified for a free system.

As a nonprofit, GRID receives grants and donations and it uses that money to partner with trade schools and colleges, which provide volunteers who need hands-on experience, to install the panels on qualifying homes. In California, a homeowner must qualify for the state's Single-family Affordable Solar Homes Program to become a GRID client.

On Tuesday, the volunteer crew included solar technology trainees from Colton's Coast Career Institute and Palm Desert's College of the Desert.

Craig Evans, president of Habitat for Humanity Inland Valley's board, said Habitat is looking forward to the Solarthon and he said it will provide even more assistance for the homeowners who have been given a "hand up."

"Now we're able to help them put a little more food on their table," he said.

During his comments, Fitzgerald thanked the GRID officials in attendance for finding him, saying he has long wanted to get solar panels to lower his bill and reduce his carbon footprint.

"But I could never afford it," he said.

GRID representatives said folks interested in finding out if they qualify can fill out a form on their website, at gridalternatives.org.